Colored Orphan Asylum

The Colored Orphan Asylum was an institution in New York City open from 1836-1946 that housed on average four hundred children annually and was mostly managed by women. Its first location was of fifth Avenue between 42nd and 43rd street which was a four- story building with two wings. The building later became the Hebrew Home for the Aged in Riverdale, the Bronx, New York.

The Colored Orphan Asylum was founded in 1836 by three Quakers; Anna and Hanna Shotwell and Marry Murray it was one of the first of its kind in the United States to take in black children whose parents had died, or were not able to take care of them. In 1846 Dr. James McCune smith, the country's first licensed African American medical doctor became the orphanage's medical director. The orphanage moved several times in Manhattan.

In March 1863 Federal draft laws became more strict. All male citizens between the ages of twenty and thirty-five were subjected to the military draft. The Federal government used a lottery system to choose the men that were eligible for the draft. Males did have the opportunity to hire a substitute or pay the government three hundred dollars to avoid enlistment, but most working males couldn't afford substitution. Black males weren't eligible for the draft because they weren't considered citizens of The United States of America. Working class white males that disagreed on the Federal draft laws rioted Federal Buildings and black neighborhoods. The Colored Orphan Asylum was burned down by Irish mobbers during the New York Draft Riots on July 13, 1863. The children were led out the back door to escape.

The asylum was rebuilt by the Quakers in 1867 on 143rd Street and Amsterdam Avenue. In 1944 the asylum was renamed the Riverdale Children's Association.

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